Joanne Taylor
Projects
This project will carry out a targeted survey of Caledonian pine in Scotland to assess extent and incidence of symptoms and to collect samples; compare and identify to species level isolates of potential causal agents collected from native Scots pine and determine their phylogenetic placement and genetic diversity; develop an effective inoculation method through studies of the infection process on needles and woody tissues of Scots pine, and; determine the pathogenicity of the causal agent(s) on Scottish provenances of Scots pine.
This project was selected for funding from the Project Call: “Enhancing preparedness against pests and diseases: plugging evidence gaps for Scotland”.
Impact: Expand the PHC online resource to create a comprehensive and unique signposting resource for plant health information for all sectors.
The aim of this commission is to establish the template and initial population of a curated online resource bank for plant health threats to the natural environment in Scotland. This will include assembly of, or signposting to, available existing resources. Where applicable, it will also include authoritative distillations of the key issues targeted at non-specialists. Where there are conflicting sources of advice/recommendations, the scope is not to achieve reconciliation of these issues, but rather to simply note that different perspectives exist. The content will be housed on the Plant Health Centre website (https://www.planthealthcentre.scot/).
Impact: Increasing the accessibility of information for land managers with responsibility for the natural environment, but a lack of specialist expertise in plant health
Publications
Understanding a new health threat to Caledonian Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris)
This project was initiated in response to a new health threat to Scots pine manifesting itself in the form of multiple blackened cankers and dieback of shoots and branches, particularly in the lower crown. Scots pine is regarded as iconic in Scotland for a range of ecological, cultural and economic reasons. Therefore, it is a research priority to gain an understanding of the extent and causes of the canker disease for better protection of this species in the future.
Expansion of PHC Online Plant Health Resources
This project has expanded the PHC online Resource Bank for plant health threats to the Natural Environment sector in Scotland to include information sources for the remaining three sectors (Forestry, Agriculture and Horticulture). Information sources for Forestry, Agriculture and Horticulture were compiled and evaluated, and a Knowledge Bank relevant to each sector is now online at the PHC website, creating a comprehensive and unique signposting resource for plant health information with relevance to Scotland.
Development of an online, user friendly plant health resource bank for the Scottish Natural Environment
The aim of the project PHC2018/11 was to compile a resource to be embedded within the Scottish Plant Health Centre (PHC) website, with the following three main purposes: 1) To direct users to existing, comprehensive and reliable plant health information resources; 2) To provide information on selected plant health threats to the natural environment, particularly invasive non-native species; and 3) To direct users to appropriate government agencies and resources and advise users on steps to take should a suspected statutory pest or disease be encountered.
Webpages have been developed which provide the following:
1) a listing of the first most pressing plant health threats to the natural environment in Scotland;
2) a user-friendly web template, populated with links to information about these major threats and other topics relevant to plant health in the Scottish natural environment; and
3) summary pages providing guidance on biosecurity and control of diseases in this sector, for which other resources were not easily available.